No significant improvement has been made to Lehigh County's siren system in the past year to give residents an initial and adequate warning that a large- scale natural or manmade emergency exists.

On the morning of Jan. 4, 1984, a false missile attack warning was sounded across Pennsylvania. Lehigh was the only county in the state where Civil Defense officials hit the sirens when the warning accidentally was relayed from Harrisburg.

But no one knows how many of the 39 sirens in the county actually worked that day. It is known that at least some of them did not work.

After that incident, many county residents began to wonder if they would hear any warning during a real emergency.

Jerry Duckett, the county's Civil Defense director, has been singing the same song since the incident and still wonders if anyone is listening.

Duckett says the county's siren system is antiquated. He says there aren't enough sirens for everyone in the county to hear a warning.

He says the sirens that do exist don't have a distinct sound so people can readily understand their significance. And he says it would cost more than $1 million to install a new system.

Last week Allentown Fire Chief Ernest Toth said only two Civil Defense sirens work in the whole city, and they are old. Saying he should have at least five more new sirens, Toth commented: "It scares me that we can't warn our people."

The outdoor warning system is to alert the public to immediately turn on a radio to find out the nature of the emergency and get instructions on what they should do.

Duckett said four of the 39 sirens in the county are "permanently" out of service. He estimates there should be at least 25 sirens within Allentown city limits and an additional 100 sirens scattered throughout the county.

Shortly after the missile attack incident, many other local officials echoed the cries of Toth and Duckett that more should be done to protect the lives and property of county residents during an emergency.

Duckett believes nothing has been done because there isn't any money and because people don't consider the matter a priority.

He said there is "tremendous apathy" because many people think the sirens only would be used to warn of a nuclear attack from which there would be no escape.

But that is not the only reason for a countywide siren system, according to the Civil Defense director. He said it is needed to warn of tornadoes, floods, or if a sudden evacuation is required because of an escape of toxic chemicals.

No one has funds to upgrade the existing warning system, which was installed in 1967.

Local officials think it is the responsibility of the state or federal governments to pay for an outdoor warning system. State and federal emergency management personnel indicate the responsibility lies at the local level.

Spokesmen for the state and federal emergency management agencies confirm they don't have the money to help install a new warning system or the authority to force local or county governments to do it.

No proposals for funds to upgrade the siren system have been made in the county's budget.

"I guess it's a piece of unfinished business," commented County Commissioner Don Davies. Last May, several months after the incident, Davies reportedly "grilled" Duckett on what was being done to improve the public warning system.

Duckett noted that, soon after the warning incident, he and other local officials met with state legislators and urged them to do "all in their power" to obtain funds. But, he added, "as soon as I mentioned a million dollars, they crawled under their chairs."

Toth said he and Allentown Mayor Joseph Daddona were at the same meeting, adding their appeals "fell on deaf ears."

State Sen. Guy Kratzer, who was at the meeting last January, said getting funds for a warning system is "a local responsibility, not a matter of looking to Harrisburg or Washington." He said the people in Lehigh County are going to have to come to a consensus on what kind of financial cost they are willing to bear for Civil Defense.

State Rep. Roy Afflerbach, who also attended the January meeting, said a legislative appropriation for new warning systems could only be made for the whole state, not just for one county. And before that could be done, legislators would need a firm estimate of how much money is needed to upgrade or replace systems.

A spokesman for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) said technical studies would be required to determine how much money is needed.

Aides to U.S. Rep. Don Ritter last week reported there has been "no pressing cry" from local officials asking the Republican congressman to try to obtain federal funds for a new siren system in Lehigh. John Kachmar, Ritter's administrative assistant, said he is aware of no specific request for funds.